Mathematical Language and

Symbols
Chapter 2
Mathematical Language
• Mathematical language is a system used in the field of
mathematics to communicate mathematical ideas, concepts, and
theories among people. It is distinct and unique from the usual
language most people are used to and is used to communicate
abstract, logical ideas.

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Mathematical Language
• It makes it easy to express the kinds of symbols,
syntax and rules that mathematicians like to do and
characterized by the following
a. Precise – able to make a very fine distinction
b. Concise – able to say things briefly
c. Powerful – able to explain complex thoughts with
relative ease.

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Mathematical symbols
• are used to refer to certain quantities, concepts, and ideas, among
other things. The most commonly used symbols in basic
mathematics are the numbers (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9), the four
fundamental symbols of operation (+, -, ×, ÷), the inequality symbols
(≠, ≤, ≥, < >), and the equal sign (=).

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Writing Mathematical Language as an
Expression or a Sentence
• In mathematics, an expression or mathematical expression is a
finite combination of symbols that is well formed according to
rules that depend on the context. It is a correct arrangement of
mathematical symbols used to represent a mathematical object of
interest.
• The most common expression types are numbers, sets, and
functions.

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Mathematical sentence
• is the mathematical analogue of an English sentence. That is, it is a
correct arrangement of mathematical symbols that state a complete
thought. Hence, it makes sense to ask if a sentence is true, false,
sometimes true, or sometimes false.

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• Take a look at the table below to visualize the difference between
expression and sentence in mathematics.

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Mathematical Convention
• A mathematical convention is a fact, name, notation, or usage
which is generally agreed upon by mathematicians. For instance,
the fact that one evaluates multiplication before addition in the
expression is merely conventional: there is nothing inherently
significant about the order of operations. Mathematicians abide by
conventions in order to allow other mathematicians to understand
what they write without constantly having to redefine basic terms.

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Perform Operations on Mathematical
Expressions Correctly
• Follow the order of operations.

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Here’s an example of how we can get different answers if the correct
order of operations is NOT followed:
 Lesson 2: Four Basic Concepts in
Mathematical Language

(Set, Functions,
Relation and
Binary Operation)
- Are denoted by upper case letter.
If a is an element of set A, then we
use the notation . Suppose b does
not belong to set A, then we use
the notation .
RELATION
- is a set of ordered pairs. The set of
all first components of the ordered pairs
is called the domain of the relation, the
set of all the second components are
called the range of the relation.
EXAMPLE:
Any of the following are then relations because
they consist of a set of ordered pairs.
{(-2,5), (-1,0), (2,-3)}
{(-1,0), (0,-3), (2,-3), (3,0), (4,5)}
{(3,0), (4,5)}
{(-2,5), (-1,0), (0,-3), (1,-4), (2,-3), (3,0), (4,5)}
FUNCTION

- is a relation for which each value

from the set in the first components of
the ordered pairs is associated with
exactly one value from the set of second
components of the ordered pair.
{(-3,3), (-2,-6), (-1,0), (0,15), (1,-1)}

{(-3,-6), (-2,-6), (-1,-6), (0,-6), (1,-6)}

{(-3,-6), (-2,-1, (-1,0, (0,3), (1,0), (1,15)}

{(-3,-6), (-2,-1), (-1,0), (0,3), (1,15), 16}

 BINARY OPERATION
- is simply a rule for combining two values
to create a new value. The most widely known
binary operations are those learned in
elementary school: addition, subtraction,
multiplication and division on various sets of
numbers.
- A binary operation on a set is a calculation
involving two elements of the set to produce
another element of the set.
 Lesson 3: Elementary Logic

Propositional Logic
- is a mathematical system for reasoning
about propositions and how they relate to one
another.
- Every statement in propositional logic consists of
propositional variables combined via logical
connectives.
Propositional Logic
- Each variable represents some proposition, such as
“You liked it” or “You should have put a ring on
it.”
- Connectives encode how propositions are related,
such as “If you liked it, then you should have put a
ring on it.”

Example: “Every square is a rhombus or every

square is a parallelogram.”
Propositional Variables
A variable that represents propositions
Propositional variables are usually represented
as lower-case letters, such as , , , , . p, q, r, s, etc.
Each variable can take one of two values: true or
false.
Propositional variables in logic play the same
role as numerical variables in arithmetic.
Example: “Every square is a rhombus or every
square is a parallelogram.”

Let p = Every square is a rhombus

q = Every square is a parallelogram

We use the variable p and q to let the two

proposition in a given statement.
Logical Connectives
The logical connectives are defined by
truth tables (but have English language
counterparts).
In addition to propositional variables,
we have logical connectives such as not,
and, or, conditional, and bi-conditional.
 How to Read
Logical Connectives
Logical NOT: p - Read “not p”
- IF p is a proposition, then negation of p is a proposition which
is
- true when p is false
- false when p is true
- Also called logical negation.

Example:
p = Indonesia is in Asia.
~p = Indonesia is not in Asia.
p q
 Logical AND: - Read “ p and q.”
is true when both p and q are true
False when both p and q are false
Also called logical conjunction.

Example: “Philippines is in Asia and the

capital of Philippines is Manila.”
p q
Logical OR: - Read “ p or q.”
 is true when either one of p or q or both are
true (inclusive OR).
False when both p and q are false
Also called logical disjunction.

Example: “Every square is a rhombus or

every square is a parallelogram.”
p q
Logical IMPLIED (IF…, THEN…):
p →q
 Read “ p implies q” or “if p …, then q…”
 It is true when both p and q are true or when p is false.
 It is false when p is true and q is false
Also called logical implication.

Example: “If I will go to Australia, then I will earn

more money.”
p q
 Logical EQUIVALENT: or
- Read “p is equivalent to q” or “p is equivalent to q if and
only if…)”
- p and q are logically equivalent if they have identical
truth values under all possible situations.
- It is true when either both p and q are true or both p
and q are false
- It is false in all other cases
- Also called logically bi-conditional.
Example:
“I will get wet if and only if it rains.”
p q
 Quantifiers

• Are words that denote the number of objects or cases

referred to in a given statement. It comes from the
Latin word “quantos”. English quantifiers include
“all”, “none”, “some”, and “not all”.

• The quantifiers “all”, “every”, and “each” illustrate

that each and every object or case satisfies the given
condition.
• The quantifiers “some”, “several”, “one of” and
“part of” illustrate that not all but at least one
object or case satisfies the given condition.
Example:
“All students are intelligent.”
“Every student is intelligent.”
“Each student is intelligent.”
“Any student is intelligent.”